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Inexpensive way to try out a fretless

#121
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#126
bassista6 said:
I sent him an offer. Unfortunately I had some car trouble so my budget is a little lower than it was a month ago.
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I wish you good luck! I love my GWB35. Got it used a year ago and put a Bart pickup and preamp in it (cause they were both on very deep discount sale at bestbassgear at the time).

It's an astounding instrument. Play back by the bridge and the notes are pointy and punchy. Play softly up over the end of the fingerboard and it just siiiiiiings.
 
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#127
Well I finally got my first fretless bass today. An Ibanez SFR705 it came with a brand new Ibanez MB100C hard case. I paid $575. The owner had it for less than a year and hardly played it. It's in perfect condition and there isn't a scratch on it. It has really low action and no fret buzz or dead spots. It really looks and sounds great. Now all that's left to do is practice... a lot. Again thanks everyone for all of your suggestions and advice.
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#129
Im loving it. The neck is super fast and it's incredibly light might even be lighter than my sr600. I love the piezo pickup. I just got my tax return Monday so I was able to go above my initial price range and it was definitely worth it. I think it will be a lot easier to learn fretless on this bass than the cheaper options I was considering. It's still gonna take time though.
 
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#133
Haha. I meant string buzzing. All the Fenders I tried in the store had some but I guess this one was set up pretty well from the factory. The string spacing on this thing is perfect for me. When I got my Carvin XB76 it took me months to get used to how close the strings were but I've had no problems with the Portamento. I have a very good ear but no muscle memory yet. I was able to get through Soul Intro The Chicken in pretty good tune other then the parts above the twelfth fret yesterday and I wasn't able to play anything that sounded decent Thursday. I'm already seeing some improvement. I really like the lines on the side of the neck. They're a great reference point and it keeps my neck looking clean. I never cared for the look of a lined fretless though I probably would have brought one if I hadn't come across this deal. I've got til 6 to practice today so that's what I'm gonna do.
 
#136
Nice. Looking online those Portamento's brand new are going for $950+, ouch. I bought a new SCSR805 last summer and it's been great. Haven't felt the need to make any pup or preamp mods to it, it plays that well stock.

I'm looking for a unlined, fretless 5er now within my budget. I have a Godin Ultra A5 Fretless but like to lighten my load abit. The Godin sits heavy on my shoulders a couple hours into the gigs. Good deal you got there, enjoy.
 
#138
ErnieD said:
Nice. Looking online those Portamento's brand new are going for $950+, ouch. I bought a new SCSR805 last summer and it's been great. Haven't felt the need to make any pup or preamp mods to it, it plays that well stock.

I'm looking for a unlined, fretless 5er now within my budget. I have a Godin Ultra A5 Fretless but like to lighten my load abit. The Godin sits heavy on my shoulders a couple hours into the gigs. Good deal you got there, enjoy.
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I got a great deal. It was practically brand new. The guy played it maybe 5 times and it never left his house. It was worth it I absolutely love it and I've taken to fretless way better than I expected. From April till a couple of weeks ago it's all I played and practiced with at home. I still played out with my fretted basses cause I wasn't very confident but I played out with it for the first time 3 weeks ago and it went great. I heard so many stories about how hard it was going to be so I was really surprised how after a couple days woodshedding with it I sounded pretty decent. Even when playing through a tuner my intonation was way better than anticipated. I'm getting more and more comfortable with it every day and it's actually become the bass I play most. My Carvin XB76 coming in second.

The Portamento is super light. It's got to be at least 2 pounds lighter than both of my Fenders and they're four strings. The pickups suit me just fine. I have an SR600 with the same Barts and I like the sound. I know a lot of people don't care for it though. The Piezo sounds very good as well. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone looking to buy a fretless bass.
 
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#140
@bassista6, Yes, I have abuncha fretted, 5ers, Valenti, SB5000, MIA P5 to name a few of the 12 I own. And man, I really appreciate the lighter, Ibby SCSR805. It may not have the quality of parts or build as my others but it plays very nicely to me with the stock MK1's. I used to hate the MK1's in a few SG Ibby's I once owned. But the new preamp in this SC805 makes a big difference to my ears with those pups.

And yes, I prefer the unlined fingerboard on my fretless's/fretlesses/fret-li ? ;)

After 35+ years of avoiding playing on the frets of my fretted basses, my hand just wants to avoid those faux-fret lines on lined, fretless basses. :smug: So I do better just listening to my intonation as I play. Welp, I'm still looking out for that one fretless bass for me. peace, e.
 

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